Member Article

Tait Walker partners with Archers Law to facilitate latest Vertu Motors acquisition

North East accountancy practice Tait Walker has joined forces with legal firm Archers Law to complete a £1.5m sale of a Darlington-based car dealership to Gateshead-based Vertu Motors Plc.

The former managing director of Blacks Autos, Malcolm Black, brought in the expert Archers Law and Tait Walker to complete the deal, which took four months from initial discussions to completion.

Malcolm Black enjoyed many years at the helm of the business before making the decision to sell his shares in the car dealership to move on to pastures new.

Tait Walker’s role in the transaction included advising on valuation, advising and assisting Malcolm on the deal and negotiations, assisting with financial and tax due diligence and working with Archers on the legal aspects of the deal.

Steve Plaskitt, Tait Walker’s corporate finance partner, said: “I thoroughly enjoyed working with Blacks Auto, Vertu and Archers on this transaction. It was a quick turnaround and involved a number of us working closely together, including our corporate finance and tax teams with support from Alastair Wilson, Chris Hird and Chris Potter. Malcolm was very happy with the result and Vertu is set to take the company forward with its first Skoda dealership which is now trading as Bristol Street Motors.”

Legal advice from Archers Law came from specialists David Adams, Christopher Todd and Daniel Flounders who dealt with due diligence, negotiated the sale agreement including warranties and disclosures, tax deed and completion of the sale.

David Adams, partner and head of business client services at Archers Law LLP, said: “We are extremely pleased to have provided the legal advice for our client in all aspects of the sale of Blacks Auto shares to the Vertu Motors group.

“As a firm with multiple specialisms we utilised a breadth of experience from across the business to deal with the negotiation of the legal documentation and completed the transaction within a very short timescale in order to meet the client’s requirements.”

Malcolm Black said: “I’ve worked with Archers for many years and have always been really pleased with their service and enjoyed working with the team. When I was introduced to Tait Walker’s corporate finance partner, Steve Plaskitt, I knew he was the right man for the job – he understood the business from the outset and gave me confidence that we could work together and achieve the desired outcomes.

“Both Tait Walker and Archers delivered a service beyond my expectations, they were quick, efficient and exceeded all my requirements, guiding me through the entire process from start to finish.

“I’ve enjoyed building Blacks Auto as a business over the years and I’d like to wish the current team every success for the future – the company and its people are a credit to the region.”

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